Packfanfb's Start of Draft Week Final Mock

[packfanfb]

Four days away from Draft Day, so this is my final mock. 

Draft

Current Picks:

Round 1: 22 and 28

Round 2: 53 and 59

Round 3: 92

Round 4: 132 and 140

Round 5: 171

Round 7: 228, 249 and 258

 

Round 1 (Pick 22) -- George Karlaftis - EDGE (Purdue) - 6'4", 266 lbs

Just keep thinking that if GK is there at 22, he's the guy. He checks too many boxes not to be the pick here. Young, athletic (9.18 RAS), and provides immediate versatility at EDGE and as an inside rusher in sub-packages. 

 

Round 1 (Pick 28) - George Pickens - WR (UGA) - 6'3", 195 lbs

Go and get your WR at pick 28. Wait and you risk a run on these guys between 30-45 (like 2020). If Pickens is there at 28, I think he's at the top of the board for GB. Another young, athletic prospect and he may have the highest ceiling for any WR in the draft in terms of a true No. 1 X receiver. Bring him on board and get ready for some fun TC match-ups between him and Stokes, just like old times. 

 

Round 2 (TRADE - Packers trade 53 and 140 to Wash for pick 47) - Perrion Winfrey - IDL (Okla) - 6'4", 290 lbs 

Winfrey could go in the 30s, but I've also seen mocks where he lasts into the 50s. Here, the Packers trade up to get right in front of Chicago (who lost Hicks and may be looking for a DT), to grab Winfrey, another guy who instantly provides some juice to the pass rush. Winfrey's biggest concern is inconsistent motor issues but when he's on he can be dominant (Senior Bowl week). Has 35.25 arms and is plug-n-play in rush packages early on. 

 

Round 2 (Pick 59) - Jaquan Brisker - S (PSU) - 6'1", 199 lbs

IMO, there are 5 safeties in this draft who set themselves apart from the rest of the group - Hamilton, Hill, Cine, Pitre and Brisker. Cross is a close sixth, but he's a step down. I want the Packers to land one of those top 5 guys. Here, Brisker is the last one left because he just turned 23 years old, but he's just as versatile as the rest of the guys not named Hamilton. Snaps for Brisker were 690 (box), 332 (slot) and 668 (deep) so he's played all over and has drawn a lot of comparisons to his PSU predecessor Adrian Amos, who he may end up replacing in 2023. 

 

Round 3 (Pick 92) - Jeremy Ruckert - TE (OSU) - 6'5", 250 lbs

There is more than one way to help the passing game versus just adding WRs, and one would be to add another receiving threat at TE, especially with some uncertainty surrounding Tonyan's early season availability. I really think Ruckert could have a Freiermuth-type rookie season if given the chance. He's also a willing (and pretty solid) blocker as well. Even if Tonyan is ready early on, pairing him in the passing game with Ruckert would open up more chances in the middle of the field, and allow the Packers to put Deguara back in the H-back type role where he's more comfortable. 

 

Round 4 (Pick 132) - Luke Goedeke - OT/OG (CMU) - 6'5", 312 lbs

While an earlier pick on the OL wouldn't be a bad idea (like Tyler Smith), ultimately, I think the Packers would be just fine waiting (like they do most years) and targeting a versatile early-Day 3 guy. Goedeke is a guy who could go late Day 2, but his inability to do much pre-draft testing could force him to drop to Day 3 and if so I expect the Packers to be interested. I think he'd be in the mix to start at RT or RG from day one, and worst case, becomes a versatile backup early on. 

 

Round 5 (Pick 171) - D'Marco Jackson - ILB (App. St.) - 6'1, 233 lbs

Time for Bisaccia to get in on the action. Jackson is a ST standout and pretty decent ILB as well. Provides some added depth at ILB, but mainly, this is a ST pick for our coverage units. 

 

Round 7 (Pick 228) - Samori Toure - WR (Neb) - 6'3", 193 lbs

In Round 7, be on the look out for guys who visited with the Packers during the pre-draft process. Toure is one of them and would be a solid get early in round 7. Toure was a stand-out FCS guy before transferring to Nebraska for his last season. Checks all the boxes the Packers like: size, good hands, pretty good blocker. 

 

Round 7 (Pick 249) - Josh Thompson - CB (Texas) - 5'11", 194 lbs

Another 30-visit player. Provides CB depth, but is also another guy who played a lot of ST at Texas, including punt/KO coverage units. 

 

Round 7 (Pick 258) - Ja'Tyre Carter - OG/OT (Southern) - 6'3", 311 lbs

Another 30-visit player, and I'd expect the Packers to double up on the OL. Carter is another versatile OL but projects best at OG. 

 

Post-Draft Moves

If the draft went this way, I think the Packers should still consider one or more of the following post-draft moves to round out the roster: 

1. Resign Dennis Kelly - don't play around with the OL. Make sure you have depth and then some, especially at OT. Even after drafting Goedeke, I'd resign Kelly and let him get first crack, along with Nijman, at the starting RT spot (while Jenkins is out). 
2. Resign Kevin King - King may not be down for a No. 4 role, but since the Packers didn't go CB until Round 7, they may want to at least call King and see if he wants to come back for pennies on the dollar to back up our big 3. Can't ever have too many quality CBs. 
3. No. 3 ILB - Packers have Campbell and Barnes as the top 2, but then it drops down to Summers and McDuffie. Adding Jackson in the 5th may be enough but Packers could look at the market for a more seasoned vet for the No. 3 spot. Not a necessity, but something to consider. 
4. WR - This draft only included one bonafide WR and a 7th round flyer. Are the Packers good with Pickens-Watkins-Lazard-Cobb being the top 4 WRs? Figure Rodgers is the No. 5 and then maybe a spot for Toure, Winfree or Taylor as the 6. Or, because this is an "all-in" season, maybe the Packers still go hunting for another guy...if so, I'd keep an eye on Will Fuller, especially if the Packers want another deep speed guy. 
5. EDGE - this all depends on how the Packers feel about Garvin moving forward. Personally, I'm okay with him being the No. 4 guy, but the Packers could go bargain shopping for a veteran to pair with Karlaftis on the 2nd unit behind Preston/Gary. There is no such thing as too many good EDGE rushers. 

 

 

Edited April 24, 2022 by packfanfb

[Leader]

👍

[Packerraymond]

Zero complaints.

[Haha21]

Karlaftis and Pickens would be a home run in the first round. Love Winfrey and Ruckert too. Probably my favorite mock I’ve seen to date.

[StartBarr]

Yea I’d be more than ok with this walking away from the draft. Good work

[NFLGURU]

Well done.  I could see this or something close to it happening.  

[Old Guy]

I could absolutely be on board with this draft. One can always nitpick and swap a pick here or there, but you nailed the first three rounds for me. Admittedly I'm not up on Brisker so I can't say on him.

[Les Punting]

Lose Brisker. Think you're a full round off on him. No way is he in the Hamilton, Hill, Cine, Pitre group. His tape vs. Mich was bad. Didn't hit, nothing exciting in coverage, nearly invisible. 2nd round? 

[packfanfb]

42 minutes ago, Les Punting said:

Lose Brisker. Think you're a full round off on him. No way is he in the Hamilton, Hill, Cine, Pitre group. His tape vs. Mich was bad. Didn't hit, nothing exciting in coverage, nearly invisible. 2nd round? 

End of round 2 is good value for JB. He's pretty much a consensus top 50 guy who had one of the best coverage grades in the country last year. Needs to get better in his run support but he can play. No one is perfect at pick 59.

[Sandy]

2 hours ago, Les Punting said:

Lose Brisker. Think you're a full round off on him. No way is he in the Hamilton, Hill, Cine, Pitre group. His tape vs. Mich was bad. Didn't hit, nothing exciting in coverage, nearly invisible. 2nd round? 

All for Brisker at 59. I agree he's behind that group, but theres a good chance they're all gone by then. He's a better prospect than Cross or Joseph, and I think he could effectively play the slot.

[Sandy]

Overall you've hit all the top needs. Pretty happy with Goedeke as the top OL option taken. Feel good about the WR group. Would love for Karlaftis or Winfrey to be available in those spots. This one nails it.

[Arthur Penske]

Really like those picks but I do think offense ( and especially skill players) will be more of an emphasis early than that. 

[Bang!]

I like Winfrey, the TE from Ohio State and Josh Thompson CB has been on my radar for a minute now thanks to multiple podcasts and reputable big boards having him steadily moving up. His stock is rising like some do and he might be long gone by Round 7.

Let me ask, I've been seeing more Pickens chatter and seeing him being the late first WR that GB selects.

All the analysis I can find has him as a top 75 guy. His combine wasn't ridiculous, and the ACL issue is always discussed more than what makes him a first round pick now 4 days before this thing pops off.

Is it because the A Group is looking like we wont have a chance at the Blue Chip names that we all know? If so is Christian Watson from ND St jumping into the middle of the first as well? Thats a guy I've found plenty on, and he ran a sub 4.4 and his work ethic and character have teams talking himup.

not doing it and overvaluing the 13 draft picks that can't realistically make the team.. i keep referencing recent drafts but history says we missed some big things and got too damn cute.

Just looking to find some recent scouting that has bumped Pickens up a full round.

 

[AlexGreen#20]

22 minutes ago, Bang! said:

I like Winfrey, the TE from Ohio State and Josh Thompson CB has been on my radar for a minute now thanks to multiple podcasts and reputable big boards having him steadily moving up. His stock is rising like some do and he might be long gone by Round 7.

Let me ask, I've been seeing more Pickens chatter and seeing him being the late first WR that GB selects.

All the analysis I can find has him as a top 75 guy. His combine wasn't ridiculous, and the ACL issue is always discussed more than what makes him a first round pick now 4 days before this thing pops off.

Is it because the A Group is looking like we wont have a chance at the Blue Chip names that we all know? If so is Christian Watson from ND St jumping into the middle of the first as well? Thats a guy I've found plenty on, and he ran a sub 4.4 and his work ethic and character have teams talking himup.

not doing it and overvaluing the 13 draft picks that can't realistically make the team.. i keep referencing recent drafts but history says we missed some big things and got too damn cute.

Just looking to find some recent scouting that has bumped Pickens up a full round.

 

The Pickens in R1 stuff is based on scheme specific assumptions. Pickens is a really good fit for what we run. 

That said, I do think the R1 stuff is overvaluing him a bit. 

[Packerraymond]

2 hours ago, Bang! said:

I like Winfrey, the TE from Ohio State and Josh Thompson CB has been on my radar for a minute now thanks to multiple podcasts and reputable big boards having him steadily moving up. His stock is rising like some do and he might be long gone by Round 7.

Let me ask, I've been seeing more Pickens chatter and seeing him being the late first WR that GB selects.

All the analysis I can find has him as a top 75 guy. His combine wasn't ridiculous, and the ACL issue is always discussed more than what makes him a first round pick now 4 days before this thing pops off.

Is it because the A Group is looking like we wont have a chance at the Blue Chip names that we all know? If so is Christian Watson from ND St jumping into the middle of the first as well? Thats a guy I've found plenty on, and he ran a sub 4.4 and his work ethic and character have teams talking himup.

not doing it and overvaluing the 13 draft picks that can't realistically make the team.. i keep referencing recent drafts but history says we missed some big things and got too damn cute.

Just looking to find some recent scouting that has bumped Pickens up a full round.

 

Not a lot of WRs in this class have productive tape vs press to give an evaluator confidence they can be a true X, Pickens does. Burks has good productivity against press, but limited sample size due to high quantity of slot snaps. Obviously with so many 180-190 pound WRs in this class, finding a true X isn't easy, that bumps Pickens up the board.